“Resented Rebuke” – FBC Morning Light (11/11/2024)

Well a good Monday morning to you. Today in our Bible reading plan, as we get started this week, we're in each of the four Gospels. Matthew chapter 26, Mark chapter 14, Luke 22, and then John 12. And I'm going to zero in on this question today.

Responding to Rebuke with Resentment or Repentance

How do you handle it when you are rebuked, with a stinging rebuke, or a challenging conviction from God's Word, from the preaching of the Word, or even from your own reading of Scripture? And yeah, it's a rebuke, it's conviction, it stings.

How do you respond to that? Now the reason that's an important question is because in this reading today, we get some insight into how the betrayer responded to stinging rebuke, and it seems that the way he responded is the result of the influence of Satan within.

Let me explain. In Luke 22, verse 1, it kind of gives us a background here, it says,. Now the feast of unleavened bread drew near, which is called Passover, and the chief priests and the scribes, they sought how they might kill Jesus, for they feared the people.

Then Satan entered Judas, surnamed Iscariot, who was numbered with the 12. Satan entered Judas. Okay, so I believe that that Satanic influence is what led him to respond to the stinging rebuke that he received in Bethany.

Let me explain. In John chapter 12, we're given the account, we're given this account of Jesus being anointed at Bethany in the different Gospels, but I wanted to focus on John's record because he gives us a detail that the others don't quite give us.

So in John chapter 12, we read in verse 4 that Mary, she took this pound of very precious perfume, spikenard, and she anointed the feet of Jesus with that. Okay, so under the influence of Satan, verse 4 says, One of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son who would betray him, said, Why was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?

Now this he said, not because he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief and had the money box and he used to take what was put in it. So here's Judas seeing this very expensive perfume poured on Jesus' feet, and he resents it and rebukes Mary for this terrible waste.

Well, the response is that he is then rebuked for criticizing her. Jesus says to her, Let her alone, she's kept this day for my burial. The poor you have with you always, but me you do not have always.

And so Jesus rebukes Judas. Now, here's the question. How are you gonna handle that? How do you handle that? How did Judas handle that? Well, we're given the answer. In Matthew, in Matthew's account, Matthew 26, verses 10 and following, it says when Jesus rebukes him, he says, Why do you trouble the woman?

She has done a good work for me. You have the poor always with you in pouring this fragrant oil on my body. He says, She did it for my burial. And then he says this, Surely I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her.

Sting, jab, you could feel the thrust of the convicting dagger going into the heart of Judas. And what does he do? Verse 14. When Judas, one of the twelve, went to the chief priest then and said, What are you willing to give me if I deliver him to you?

This rebuke, I believe, provoked such a deep resentment in Judas's heart that that was like the last straw. Now he's ready and willing to go to the chief priests and offer to betray Jesus to them. And sure enough, they gave him, promised to him, these 30 pieces of silver, and from that point on, Judas went to look for an opportunity to betray him.

It's what it says in verse 16 of Matthew 26. So from that time, he sought opportunity to betray Jesus. All of this betrayal plan, plot, looking for opportunity, was provoked by a negative response, a resentful response to rebuke.

And that resentful response, I believe, was provoked by the satanic influence within. So listen, I think it's very important for us to be sensitive to how we respond when our toes are stepped on, if you will.

When we are, you know, personally rebuked for disobedience to the Word, or for a sinful, selfish attitude, as Judas expressed, we have to be very careful that we don't respond in a resentful attitude, but instead a repentant attitude.

May that be the attitude of our hearts. Father, we thank you for this warning from your Word today, and we pray that we would be sensitive and respond well to legitimate rebuke from your Word as it confronts us, we pray.

In Jesus' name, amen. All right, well listen, I hope you have a good rest of your Monday, and I hope your week gets off to a great start today as well. Good day.